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...s of HOA’s because they maintain community appearance, have recreational ameni...

... at risk. The American Heart Association/American Stroke Association(AHA/ASA) state that around 1 in 3 .... According to the National Stroke Association, people who have high blood pre...

...keswoman Carolyn O'Donnell. "The community is important to farmers, and farmer...portant how they integrate with the community." Nearly 90 percent of U.S.-g...

...me people may have even heard of umbrella insurance, flood insurance, farm ins...

A lack of maintenance or poor quality maintenance causes thousands of on-the-job accidents every year. What's more, maintenance workers face significant risks associated with their jobs. According to the most recent Bureau of Labor Statistics job fatality report, deaths due to poor maintenance rose 14%, year to year, in 2011, the highest level since 2006. Accidents from maintenance have a variety of causes: everything from falls caused by working heights, confined spaces or harsh environments associated with accessing equipment, and shocks and burns if power is not properly isolated, to injuries from moving machine parts, musculoskeletal problems caused by working in awkward spaces and exposure to asbestos and dangerous chemicals. There are three types of maintenance: Routine or preventive maintenance keeps equipment working - such as a scheduled overhaul or replacement. Corrective maintenance gets broken equipment up and running again. Predictive maintenance uses tests for maintenance that is or will soon be needed. To make your maintenance activities safer and more productive, follow these guidelines: Emphasize planning and scheduling on every maintenance task. Invest in affordable technology such as a thermographic camera (around $1,000) to detect variations of temperature that can reveal when a machine motor is not running properly. Make sure that supervisors convey the right message consistently. Employees need to be told that accidents happen as a result of short cuts, such as failing to lock out a piece of equipment before performing maintenance. Teach workers to intervene. If an employee walks by a piece of equipment that's making an unusual noise and doesn't tell their supervisor, it's the same as ignoring a co-worker who is working unsafely. Get employees engaged and accountable. This can lead to culture change which makes safety the responsibility of everyone - not just of the safety and maintenance department. For more information on maintaining your safety maintenance program, just get in touch with us.

...ly leave gaps between coverages. Umbrella policies perform best when written b...

What is 811? Are you a homeowner or contractor? Did you know that you are required to call the number ‘811’ before digging on any property so that you can be made aware of any underground lines (e.g. pipes, cables and associated utilities) buried in the area? Improper digging can lead to damage to underground lines that can disrupt service to an entire neighborhood, harm diggers or excavators, and even incur potential fines and repair costs. In case you did not know, 811 is the national "Call Before You Dig" phone number designated by the Federal Communications Commission. This number was developed to eliminate the confusion of multiple "Call Before You Dig" numbers because it is easy to use, is the same for every state, and can help protect anyone who does dig from injury, expense and potential penalties. What Happens After Calling 811? All 811 calls are routed to a local One Call Center and the affected utilities. The utility will then send crews to the location to mark any underground lines for the homeowner or excavator for free. Do Most People Call Before They Dig? Believe it or not, in spite of all the potential danger and damage that can be caused, the answer is "no." According to a recent national survey, 45 percent of American homeowners who plan to dig this year said that they would not call 811 beforehand.* More Information For more information about the 811 call system, visit http://www.call811.com. To download the most current industry Best Practices in connection with preventing damage to underground facilities, go to http://commongroundalliance.com/. *Source: http://call811.com/before-you-dig/risk-reduction

...tal revenues), according to The Association of Certified Fraud Examiners. Smal...

Stress, called the “health epidemic of the 21st century” by the World Health Organization, costs American businesses up to $300 billion a year, According to “Stressed at Work,” a recent research report by Benzinger, Dupont &Associates, stress impacts work performance in nearly half (49%) of employees surveyed. Difficulties in concentration, absenteeism, and poor work quality are leading the way. Differences by gender or age can be significant.. Personal problems cause females to be absent from work more often, but males tend to miss more days of work. The frequency of disciplinary action for stress-related acts by males was almost twice as high as for women; with the 56-65 year-old age group having the highest disciplinary rates The good news: More than nine in ten employees (94%) report improved work performance following participation in an Employee Assistance Program (EAP). The study recommends that companies work with their EAP in identifying and addressing the needs of workers, who are more vulnerable to stress, so they can prevent potential problems becoming serious. These programs and promotion campaigns should consider differences in gender and age. For example: Managers need to pay attention to female absenteeism because it might reflect stress at home and/or at work. To decrease male disciplinary actions, EAP support and wellness programs should focus on the specific needs of men in the workforce, and use promotional outreach methods that reflect male preferences for brevity (e-mail and text messages). The more familiar you become with signs and symptoms of stress on the job, the more effective you’ll be in encouraging stressed employees to engage with EAP and workplace health programs: which means the healthier your workers are, the better your bottom line! To learn more, feel free to give us a call at any time.

Technology associated with construction has dramatically changed operations. Carefully check the class codes and their descriptions to assure proper premiums. Years ago, 5606 - contractor supervisors - served to describe on site personnel who actively performed construction activities while managing the site. The rate was equivalent to site carpenters. That code has evolved into the computer carrying, service providing construction managers and executives who document the construction process. The rate is closer to outside sales representatives now. Even excavation and site work is being dramatically changed by GPS technology. Now computers design a cut and fill pattern with efficiency. Labor is more involved in checking the geotechnical and environmental properties of the soils rather than the actual movement of them. As production technology improves, new sub-codes develop to reflect the decrease in risk. Painting, carpentry, electrician and other trades now use a selection of eight or ten separate codes to describe exact activities. More components are built in shops and brought to the site. This process can change the class code of the installers and the builders. The trend is towards more computer driven operations. Less labor, more specialists. As this trend continues, class codes will be added, deleted and the descriptions changed. There are currently over seven hundred class codes. Some are antiquated with new meanings - like a ship chandler is now a hardware store. It pays to become familiar with the classifications. If your business has been active for many years, the "governing code" may be incorrect. The governing code is the catch-all for your business which best describes the overall operation, more obvious in manufacturing. Corrugated box manufacturing has been reorganized into several class codes. Technology has separated the manufacture of cardboard and corrugated cardboard into laminating processes, cutting and folding processes, and fully integrated operations. Read your relevant class codes and think about which one reflects your operations. Or ask your agent to do it for you.